I have a "Marriott Vacation Club" question

[~Magical Princess~]

I know this is the DVC board, but I've seen others talk about the Marriott etc., and we will be crusing next year and were thinking of staying in the Marriott Vacation Club on A1A street in Ft. Lauderdale on the beach. These rooms are highly expensive -- much more than the norm of $199 say a night (there more like $289 or something) - I'm wondering if anyone can tell me anything that would make this worthwhile or if I could find a discount or perhaps rent points.

I've posted this on the rent/trade board and didnt hear anything yet - just wonderfing if anyone over here knows anything. Thansk.

 

[Jimbo]

If you're willing to spend an hour or two in a timeshare presentation, you can get your room with Marriott seriously discounted. We did exactly that at a Marriott on Hilton Head once, and two years ago extended a WDW stay with three days at Marriott's Copper Harbour in Orlando. I seem to remember that the Copper Harbour deal was a 2BR villa for three nights for $169. And it came with 4 Sea World passes.

The timeshare presentation wasn't too painful. Plus we were actually were considering buying MVCI at Hilton Head, so it was informative too.

 

[Firefighter Mickey]

Depends on what you mean by "worthwhile" - if you're thinking of only a single night, then it's probably not worth it; if it's 3 or 4 nights, then it may be worth it if you value the extra amenities such as a kitchen, resort activities, etc.

Here's a link to some more info about the BeachPlace Towers

You'll probably have to give MVC a call to see if they have any deals on accomodations for doing the presentation - and of course only you can decide if the deal is worth a couple hours of your time.

 

[ripleysmom]

If you are a AAA member try checking to see if you can get a cheaper rate. We got a decent rate at Manor Club in Williamsburg using AAA.

 

[Dean]

You can rent directly from an owner and likely get a 2 BR for around $1000-1200 depending on exact time of year, likely higher in winter. You can also get a 1 BR or studio for even less. Other resorts to consider would be Doral and Ocean Pointe. Personally, I'd prefer OP over Beachplace but depends on personality I guess. If you do the timeshare foodstamp tour make sure you're staying at the actual resort as most of the time you are not.

 

[eva]

Have you tried expedia.com? We are staying at a Sheraton timeshare for a weekend in May and found it on Expedia for only $99 a night for a 1-bedroom and $119 a night for a 2-bedroom. This is quite a savings from Sheraton's rate that they quoted us. They wanted nearly twice what Expedia had it for.